


here, at the end of all things

by blondsak



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Angst, Gen, Hurt Peter Parker, Not Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, Protective Peter Parker, Temporary Character Death, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Tony Stark Needs a Hug, at least it's temporary in my head, back on my bs, canon nudged to the left
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-03
Updated: 2020-05-03
Packaged: 2021-03-01 17:21:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,546
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23990722
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/blondsak/pseuds/blondsak
Summary: How could Tony have ever possibly considered not doing whatever it took so that this kid - this amazing, brilliant, brave, kind kid - gothissecond chance?The guilt that slices through his relief at that thought is what propels Tony forward, muttering something forgettable in response to the kid’s rambles as he pulls Peter close, the gesture surprising the boy so much he cuts off mid-sentence– asking Tony what he’s doing.Tony doesn’t reply, and he can feel the way the kid stiffens in his arms.We’ll work on that,Tony thinks as he hugs him tighter– his gratitude further blossoming when Peter almost immediately relaxes into the embrace with a soft sigh, arms going tight around Tony’s back.It’s everything Tony could have ever wanted out of a reunion with the kid, and he glances up at the sky– trying to fathom what he could possibly say that would make it clear to Peter just how damn grateful Tony feels in this moment.
Relationships: Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Comments: 80
Kudos: 193





	here, at the end of all things

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by an anonymous prompt on tumblr: "During the reunion hug in the middle of the big battle, one of the baddies shoots Peter in the back, all while Tony is holding him."
> 
> Alternatively titled by killerqueenwrites as "Chapter 7 of Five Times Peter Parker Pretended to Be Asleep" lmao <3
> 
> Also, I wrote this in about two hours and didn't really edit - apologies if there's any glaring typos I missed!!

No amount of hoping, dreaming, scheming or wishing could have prepared Tony for the moment Peter Parker - a living, breathing, rambling _Peter Parker_ \- landed right in front him.

Logically he’d known the kid was somewhere on the battlefield - had seen him swing through the portal right behind the rest of the crew from the Planet of Misfit Toys - but now, _now._

Now the kid wasn’t two feet away– helping Tony to his feet, mouth going a mile a minute in that way he only did when he was that odd mix of exhausted but hyped and god, how had Tony gone five years without this? 

How could he have ever possibly considered not doing whatever it took so that this kid - this amazing, brilliant, brave, kind kid - got _his_ second chance?

The guilt that slices through his relief at that thought is what propels Tony forward, muttering something forgettable in response to the kid’s rambles as he pulls Peter close, the gesture surprising the boy so much he cuts off mid-sentence– asking Tony what he’s doing.

Tony doesn’t reply, and he can feel the way the kid stiffens in his arms. _We’ll work on that,_ Tony thinks as he hugs him tighter– his gratitude further blossoming when Peter almost immediately relaxes into the hug with a soft sigh, arms going tight around Tony’s back. 

It’s everything Tony could have ever wanted out of a reunion with the kid, and he glances up at the sky– trying to fathom what he could possibly say that would make it clear to Peter just how damn grateful Tony feels in this moment.

_I thought about you all the time. Not a day went by that you were not missed._

_I can’t believe you’re back. I can’t believe I get to have this._

_We’re finally there, kid– and I’m going to spend the next fifty years making sure you know it._

There’s so many things he wants to say. But every single one only serves to clog up his throat with its inadequacy, so instead Tony simply closes his eyes, tucking his chin in and holding on for dear life to this kid he can now fully admit he has grown to love.

_He’s back, he’s back. My family made whole._

But then - like so many things in Tony’s life - it all falls apart.

“Oh,” Peter says good-naturedly into his collar bone, “this is– look out!”

Before Tony can so much as twitch he’s being twisted around in Peter’s arms until they’ve done a full 180, opening his eyes just in time to see one of Thanos’ minions not a foot away– raising his arm and shooting a beam in the creature’s face just as he brutally thrusts his spear forward.

A tiny groan of pain echoes in Tony’s ear, hot breath tickling his nape just as the alien drops to the ground dead, the weapon in his hand falling with him– the sharp tip of it covered in blood and gore.

Another quiet exhale into Tony’s hair and Peter’s legs go out from under him– Tony grunting as he lowers them both to their knees.

“Peter?” Tony whispers, leaning forward just enough to look down at the kid’s back– body going numb when he sees nothing but a gaping crater in the kid’s mid-section, blood flowing out at a steady pace and dripping into the dirt at Peter’s feet.

“No, no no,” Tony begs as he pulls back just enough to cup Peter’s face. 

The kid’s eyes are already at half-mast, his pallor terrifyingly pale, and no, no _no._ This– this wasn’t what was supposed to _happen._

“F-FRIDAY?”

“Life functions critical, boss,” she quietly replies, and Tony’s heart - which had only just been taped back together - shatters into a million pieces. “He’s got perhaps a minute, maybe less.”

“No, no– help!” Tony screams. “Someone, god, he’s– someone help me!”

But the battle is still raging all around them, and nobody comes– if they even heard.

With a sob Tony gathers Peter close, holding him tight and letting the kid’s head rest fully on his shoulder as he presses his hand hard over the wound. But still the blood pours out, seeping over Tony’s encased fingers, the coppery scent of it a silent promise from Death. 

_You can’t keep him. He’s mine._

Desperate, Tony pulls back again, palms to Peter’s cheeks. “Kid, you– you gotta hang on. I– you need to keep fighting, okay? Don’t give up, fight!”

A crazed giggle escapes from between Tony’s lips, and he knows he must look insane as he grins at Peter, crouching down until their noses are nearly touching– trying to capture the kid’s gaze. 

“I have a daughter now, Pete, did you know that? Her name is Morgan and she’s four and she loves popsicles and she– she only exists because of you, because I met _you._ So I need you to hang on so you can meet her, okay?”

Peter valiantly raises his eyes to stare into Tony’s for just a moment - Tony seeing nothing but apologies and agony behind them - before his gaze goes distant, wandering back down and away.

The kid opens his mouth and Tony thinks he’s about to speak but all that comes out is a trickle of blood at the corner of his lip, Tony’s breath stuttering at the sight. He can’t think, he can’t _think._ Peter is hurt and dying and he’s being useless.

Peter’s eyes close then, body listing to the side and god, this– this wasn’t how this was supposed to _happen._ Tony was supposed to bring him back and then he was supposed to return to Queens and hug his aunt and finally take that girl out he’d been crushing on, before all this. Peter was supposed to grow up and get old and live a long, full life and–

“No, Pete,” Tony breathes out, and it’s like the world goes mute, the sounds of the battle falling away until all that remains is the two of them, Tony and Peter and nothing else. “Don’t do this, kid. _Please,_ don’t do this.”

But if Peter hears Tony he doesn’t acknowledge him, eyes staying firmly closed as more blood trickles out of his mouth, painting his chin red where Tony’s blood-covered thumbs haven’t already.

“Peter,” Tony whispers, one hand keeping the kid propped up while Tony uses the other to run his fingers soothingly across the kid’s cheek, over his brow, through his hair. “Please, _please._ Don’t go.”

Tony watches in horror as the kid’s chest rises and falls with small, raspy breaths, one and another and another– only to go completely still, his body relaxing in Tony’s arms as his head falls forward limply.

“P-pete?”

“He’s gone, boss,” FRIDAY says quietly, Tony letting out an incoherent moan in response.

This wasn’t how this was supposed to _happen,_ Tony thinks as he tucks his head into the kid’s neck– leaving a wet kiss there before closing his eyes and beginning to sob in earnest. 

“Kid…”

Tony doesn’t know how long he sits there, holding the kid’s - _his_ kid’s - lifeless body to his chest. He has no awareness of time passing, his own body still numb with shock that he’d gotten Peter back only to lose him for the second time in the span of mere minutes.

Tony doesn’t care about the battle, doesn’t care about anything because Peter was here, he had been right _here_ and Tony’s fingers are still scrambling at the kid’s back as if looking for a way to keep his soul inside. But Peter’s soul is already gone– gone somewhere much further away than a damn stone, and–

Wait. The _stones._

Tony opens his eyes, gasping as he pulls his head away from the cooling skin of Peter’s neck, looking around for the first time in god knows how long as the volume of his world is suddenly turned back up.

A short distance away he sees Thanos locked in battle with Captain Marvel, the two of them fighting it out for the gauntlet, and just beyond them in the distance, standing still and calm– Strange.

Strange, who is looking directly at Tony– Tony watching as the man lifts a hand up, pointedly raising his index finger.

_“How many did we win?”_

_“One.”_

With red eyes and a stormy gaze, Tony turns to look back at Peter. The kid’s face is white where it’s not covered with blood, lips and lids a pale blue, his features slack. He looks peaceful, Tony thinks.

“You’re just sleeping, aren’t ya, Pete,” Tony whispers, taking a few deep breaths to steel himself before gently setting Peter on the ground– putting his palm over the boy’s brow. “That’s okay, you can keep napping for a bit longer. But don’t go anywhere, alright? I’ll be right back, I promise.”

As much as Tony doesn’t want to leave Peter’s side, he has a new mission– one that included getting rid of Thanos and his army but now with an extra request thrown in. 

With one last fond look at his kid, Tony stands up, turning to where Thanos is now getting the upper hand on Danvers. Determined, he starts to head toward the fray.

“You’re just sleeping, kid, but don’t worry. I’m gonna wake you up.”

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and kudos are what feed my writing gremlin. Or feel free to message me on [tumblr](https://blondsak.tumblr.com)!


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